Archaeology in the news

There was an interesting news item on Amarr Certified News (copied by the Scope) : it appears that archeologists have discovered an ancient lance implying that tournaments between Holders are older than previously thought. 

The common belief is that such tournaments originated during or around the Udorian wars, at the height of knightly culture. It was fashionable for young nobles to make their reputation during these wars on foreign shores. Back home, they were keen to show off their prowess and bravery, especially to the ladies of the Imperial court, during jousting tournaments.

The lance from the news has been discovered on Amarr island itself. That makes sense if it is to challenge the common belief that such tournaments originated around the Udorian wars. Indeed, if the practice is older than that, is has to take place on Amarr island, because before the Udorians arrived on our shores, we were not a seafaring people.

Tournament lances are different from combat lances, as shown below: 

To the right, you see a common combat lance. The lance-head is sharp and designed to kill. The left shows a blunted lance-head typically used for jousting. They were mounted on a heavy, difficult to control wooden lance-pole. The knights would thrust at each other with the heads of their lances, and try to unseat each other rather than kill each other. They would do so by first shattering shields and then very often splintering the opponents lance. In fact, knights inviting each other to a joust would do so by asking to "break lances with each other".

So, it is no wonder that very few tournament lances were recovered. Surviving lances from the early Udorian period are rare, and mostly identified from heraldry. It is not just the helmets and shields that were used for heraldic displays, but also the lances - they could bear inscriptions identifying the owner of the lance. In connection with the Book of Records, this can be a very useful method to date the items, perhaps more accurately than with radio-isotope dating. This must have led to the surprising conclusion that the lance mentioned in the news is indeed older than any other tournament lance found previously.

((ooc images attribution: The Metropolitan Museum of Art))